Stay Healthy and Be the “Star” Web Designer

I was looking into the mirror and suddenly my jaw dropped. I could see my tummy trying to come out. The bump (that a pregnant woman fancies) might just be my next big tension. But, you know what? I am not as worried as someone else in my place would be.

Along with my freelancing career, I take care of my health and sanity very seriously.

Just because you're not sick doesn't mean you're healthy

I have a more-than-average face (blushes), good height, geeky mind, appreciable physic and I earn well. I know that a tummy popping out of this attractive (just saying) body design will never look good. Here is what I do (and plan to do) to keep myself fit and charming. Joining me?

P.S. I won’t be including a “Why Stay Healthy?” sub-section in this article. If you really looking for an answer to that sort-of question then this isn’t for you. Adios.

Dozing Helps!

What? Did you just say that? Did you?
Well, I actually did. Usually, people doze off and sleep due to the obvious reasons below:

They are becoming bored with whatever they are up to.

They haven’t been enjoying enough required rest.

The first reason is out of the scope of this discussion and the latter is what matters to me (and you). If we deprive our body of the requisite amount of sleep then we tend to doze off in between important (or boring) sessions. A gentleman might not appreciate you dozing off in front of him but a study done in Harvard University has something else to say.

A midday snooze helps your brain reverse the information overload and gives it the rest that it deserves. Also, a study by NASA confirmed that a short nap helps you focus better on one task while your brain keeps the other tasks at bay. Along with all the attractive words, these studies have some warnings (those terms and conditions kind-of things you know):

Such naps cannot replace a real night’s sleep so don’t even think about that.

Don’t stretch these naps to more than 30 minutes. Waking up after that time period is really frustrating for our brain.

Henceforth, it is good to let your brain doze off for some time and let your partner do the shouting.

Take Help from Melatonin

Melatonin is a versatile hormone that your brain produces. Researchers have proved that Melatonin does plenty of good things like:

Provides a powerful antioxidant

Strengthens the immune system

Prevents depression

Prevents some forms of cancer

Avoids cardiovascular disease

Synchronizes the biological clock and regulates sleep.

To keep the body in good health is a duty, otherwise we shall not be able to keep our mind strong and clear.

Read that last pointer? Basically, Melatonin production is influenced by light. Darkness stimulates it while light suppresses it. Now you know why your grandma wanted you to understand the importance of a good night’s sleep?

Morning Sunshine is a Must

All you programmers, designers and strategists – get out! I mean it. Leave your laptops for some time and consume some sunshine (without sunscreen) for at least 15 minutes every morning. It provides your body with much needed Vitamin D.

Also, if you don’t have 15 minutes free then go out with your laptops. Please, don’t miss out on this vital and quick energy source.

Good Food, Please!

Why do you think doctors keep telling you the importance of a good and balanced diet? They aren’t crazy. I agree that they get paid to say such stuff but that doesn’t mean that they are faking it. They really aren’t.

"One should eat to live, not live to eat." - Moliere

Please understand that dieting or skipping meals for work isn’t what a healthy human should do. When you skip a meal then your muscles break into glucose and that glucose is consumed by your body to generate energy. You will survive if you skip meals but at the loss of your own muscle. This process has three disadvantages:

With decreased muscles your body will burn fewer calories.

When you eat normally then the food is first converted to fat. It will never change into muscle unless you start working out.

Lastly (and the most ugly of all), your clothes won’t fit due to increased body fat. Be Warned!

Regular Workouts

What? You think that you can escape that? The above tips won’t do any good if you aren’t working out. I won’t stretch this section much as the bottom line is very clear already.

Those who do not find time for exercise will have to find time for illness.

Either you exercise regularly or stop fooling yourself with various diet plans and stuff.

Family and Offline Social Networks

Please do not misunderstand social network sites such as Facebook and Twitter. I mean, I know they are cool and webmasters cannot survive without them but we are working day and night for something we call LIFE. Why miss out on the human touch just in return for the nerdy tag? Stop reading and call someone. Go out and watch a movie. The break and change of atmosphere does help mentally and physically. Have a life, dude!

“Levity is good. It relieves tension and fear of death.” – Arnold Schwarzenegger in Terminator 3

Stay Healthy Tools for Webmasters

From Facebook to Twitter, people are searching for health information like never before. In between all this we (the webmasters) look for tools that are specifically designed for us. So, here goes a list of online WordPress plugins that webmasters can use for their health and wellness.

Body Mass Index Calculator: Simple WordPress plugin that will help you and your visitors figure out if they are overweight or within the normal range.

Runners Log: This can be used to publish a training log. Use it to inspire your readers about your running achievements or inspire yourself by the failures of the same.

mTouch Quiz: See if you can stand up to the questions generated by this plugin. Can be used to test yourself and inspire yourself if you do not do well.

Daily Fitness Tips: This plugin will continuously generate fitness tips from third party website right on your blog’s sidebar. If you are running a health blog then it is advisable to avoid this, as they might be your competitors.

Conclusion

This isn’t the end. It should actually be the new beginning. We are all in same boat. It depends on us if we want to stay fit for this game or opt out due to fitness issues.

Health is a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being, and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity. - World Health Organization, 1948

I guess none of us want to see our competitors take the leap towards success while we fight with stuff like asthma and sleep disorders. Don’t change your competitors (from webmasters to health problems), please.

Opinions expressed in this article are those of the author and not necessarily those of Onextrapixel.

Salman Siddiqui is a seasoned WordPress critic with 5 years of WordPress experience. He is an alpha geek with a degree in computer engineering. He spends his day as software engineer with a Fortune 100 company and nights as a freelance writer. He believes that everyone must blog about something and plans to be a full time writer in future.